Hello all! Yesterday was quite a fantastic day and certainly one of the best I’ve ever had. My panel at LeakyCon 2011 went so much better than I expected. Lots of people showed up, I stopped feeling nervous, and I got to hang out with a whole lot of people who are members of this community.
I’m putting this up to see if anyone who filmed or photographed the panel has video or photos to share with everyone who could not make it down to Orlando. If you do, please link to them in the comments!
I’m very happy with the way the panel turned out and I’m glad I got to spend time signing stuff and talking to a lot of you. This will easily go down as one of the best weekends of my whole life!
Thank you, to all of you! 🙂
So jealous of everyone that got to go! Congrats, though, Mark. That's how you know you've made it big on the internet right there.
Why do I have to live on THE OTHER SIDE OF THE GLOBE???!!!
🙁
Sadness forever.
I know! I even had a friend that went but couldn't let me watch the panel by proxy because she was volunteering at the time! D:
I tried to follow the panel on twitter but it seems like hardly anyone was tweeting about it or using a good hashtag, lol. I suppose they were all focusing on you and not their cellphones.
Only a few people had WiFi at the Convention. It really sucked. We even had trouble using our cellphones to make calls.
Ugh. I am so mad I didn't make it to LeakyCon. I really hope to see photos or video soon.
So glad it went well for you, Mark. Congrats! I'd love to see some photos or videos of it.
Not much to say that hasn't been said already, lol. Congratulations Mark on a successful panel, and I'm hoping to see a video of it soon! 😀
Even as someone who was there, I'd like to see some video! You were great Mark- so friendly and funny. I loved your reading of the chapter in Prisoner of Azkaban… that is, the reading of the first three pages or so.
Your panel was one of the two biggest reasons I was sorry to miss LeakyCon. Thank you so much for letting us know how it went.
I'm so glad it went well, Mark, sounds like it was a blast. Envious of everyone who got to meet up! Look forward to seeing footage of some kind from MarkReads people 🙂
I have found footage and photos that people emailed me. I'll update this post in a bit. 🙂
I'm proud to live in the country where Harry Potter was created and situated, but when it comes to being able to attend conventions… it SUCKS! Grrrr COME TO ENGLAND MARK
…And I typoed my own damn username D:
I SECOND THE MOTION.
Oh dear, how awful are we? How dare Mark live in another country I demand he visit me here for my convenience. 😛
Oh well. A meetup in England would be hugely fun but I guess it's unlikely. 🙁
Yes, this! I had no idea there even were HP conventions. I want to go 🙁
Being the TOTALLY UNASHAMED PEDANT here and saying Harry Potter was created and situated in Britain, not England. She had the idea on a train in England, wrote the books in Edinburgh, Scotland and set the books in both England for the Ministry, the Dursleys, the Burrow etc, Wales for some of the camping scenes in DH and Scotland for Hogwarts. There, these revisions will satisfy my pedant's heart.
If pedantry is called for, I believe I should point out that as far as I recall, it's never stated conclusively whether Hogwarts is in Scotland or not – only that it's "north". It's specifically stated that very few people even *know* precisely where it's located, so the fact that it's left ambiguous seemed to be deliberate, to me.
Am I wrong and missing somewhere where it's spelled (no pun intended) out?
I think if a person does the math for the time it takes the Hogwarts Express to travel from London to Hogsmeade, it's going to lead you to the highlands of Scotland. Also, JKR has been saying for, like, nearly 15 years that Hogwarts is in Scotland.
I don't think it's in the books, but Rowling herself said Hogwarts is in Scotland at the HP7.2 premiere.
I also second this motion.
Ahh, I wanted to go there so badly!! If they had hosted it in NYC, then I totally could've come. But Orlando is a bit too far, I'm in Pennsylvania… TRAVEL UP THE EAST COAST!! 😀
Maybe Mark should do a world tour!
I give this idea ALL THE HIGH FIVES.
Seconded!
Choosing to go to your panel was one of the best decisions I made all week at LeakyCon. It was so great! Thanks for making my Leaky experience even more memorable!
I don't have video or picture from the panel, just this picture: http://i109.photobucket.com/albums/n55/ladidajhon…
From after giving you my e-mail 🙂
Thanks so much again! Hope you had a blast!
Dang. Sorry about the pic. I guess I linked the wrong one, or Photobucket messed up. Honestly don't know how that happened. Anyhow, here's the correct link: http://s109.photobucket.com/albums/n55/ladidajhon…
I am in awe of the bow tie.
HAHAHA BOW TIES ARE COOL 😀
Mark, it was such a pleasure to get to hear you speak at LeakyCon! I don't think I laughed as hard during my whole time at conference. It was also wonderful how patient you were afterward with meeting and talking with everyone. Now I'm looking forward reading through all your posts! 🙂
LeakyCon was so amazing and your panel was definitely one of the highlights. The next day I was waiting in line with someone who had seen your panel but never been to your site and she loved it as well. My camera is the worst so this is the only alright picture I managed to get of your live chapter review: http://i53.tinypic.com/rss8k2.jpg
And one more picture of afterwards: http://i54.tinypic.com/o59dvq.jpg
I'm so glad that you liked the hats! Also, that shirt you were wearing was so soft and made your hugs like 10x better.
Did you go to the Pottermore event and the Wizard Rock concert that day? Because holy shit those were some of the most amazing things that happened this whole weekend and we need to talk about these very important things such as Evanna Lynch rocking out on bass with Harry and the Potters and the amazing magical things that were learned about Pottermore.
Awesome crown of crowning awesomeness 😀
My gosh, I love the crown. You rocked the bowtie look and the crown look at once, Mark, quite a feat 🙂
THE HATS YOU MADE ME!!! I am wearing the NOT PREPARED one today!!!
Super late to the party but I had such a good time speaking with you before the panel, and listening to you during the panel, and then a not-so-great time booking it out of there to go volunteer at the HPA merch table and listening to everyone talk about how great the next hour and a half with you was. I GOT NO MARK!HUG. SADFACE FOREVER.
*cough* Still, it was amazing, and I am so glad I got to meet you, Mark. <3
That was the best panel I've been to! It was amazing just getting to talk with you and getting a hug was so full of awesome that I could barely contain myself!
By the way, during the Harry Potter Actors panel, Melissa Annelli mentioned your blog and recommended it for anyone that has friends reading Harry Potter for the first time! So the actors now know about you too. 🙂
Love and Hugs!
I am so sad you didn't get to finish that chapter of PoA. You're absolutely hilarious and I'm so glad I went to your panel.
Why did I miss this I LIVE IN ORLANDO FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF
I just got home after LeakyCon (I'm Natalia from Chile). Your panel was def. one of the highlights of the Con for me. My friend had never heard of you but she adored you and now is going to read The Hunger Games just so she can read your posts about it afterwards.
I also have only one good picture, and it's here: http://i54.tinypic.com/25jcqpe.jpg
Thanks again! (I'm still waiting for the thing, you know? That thing. Yeah)
Mark! Is there an e-mail where I can contact you? I took a few pictures from your panel that I could (and would like to) e-mail you.
Mark, you signing up for Pottermore, by any chance?
(Or is anyone on here?)
I was able to register today. 😀
Can I just point out how brilliant you are? For nights now I have been staying up till about three in the morning reading your Harry Potter reviews (which i love by the way, Harry Potter is amazing<3) I have started reading your Twilight reviews to see if you thought about the saga the same way I do and, literally, I was hysterically laughing at how true everything you said was. ( I'm aware that this totally sounds creepy by the way, and I don't know why I decided to tell you this on your LeakyCon post, but whatever. your awesome. ok bye.)
You know what??!!!! you should prepare a world tour!!!! Or just come to see Machu Picchu (as everyone else) and all HP fans can make a party!!!!
I've been following you since HP1 and I just love you!!!!! U r the best!!!!